Review of: Rise(Eve, #3) by Anna Carey

Rise(Eve, #3) by Anna Carey

Page Count(Paperback Edition): 310 pgs
Publisher: HarperCollins
Released: April 2nd, 2013
Genre: Young Adult Dystopian
My Rating: 2/5 stars
Read: from 10/26/14 to 12/22/14
Source: Books-A-Million
Synopsis: 

How far will you go when you have nothing left to lose?

When she lost her soul mate, Caleb, Eve felt like her world had ended. Trapped in the palace, forced to play the part of the happy, patriotic princess of The New America—and the blushing bride of her father's top adviser—Eve's whole life is a lie. The only thing that keeps her going is Caleb's memory, and the revolution he started.

Now, Eve is taking over where Caleb left off. With the help of Moss, an undercover subversive in the King's court, she plots to take down The New America, beginning with the capital, the City of Sand. Will Eve be able to bring about a new, free world when she's called upon to perform the ultimate act of rebellion—killing her father?

In Rise, Eve must choose who to leave behind, who to save, and who to fight as Anna Carey's epic tale of romance and sacrifice in the chilling dystopia of The New America comes to a stunning conclusion. 

(from Goodreads)

First off, Merry Christmas everyone, if you celebrate it! I had a wonderful day with family and friends, and I'm looking forward to the coming days to spend time with some special people :)

Okay so I have to be truthful here, but also give the author some credit. The first half of the book, I had huge aspirations for. I was completely happy, until the ending. From there, Carey lost me. I have no words other than I'm disappointed in this trilogy's ending.

By far, the first 2 books in the series provided more rapid heartbeats than this book had the potential to. For lack of a better word, I was bored. I was utterly heartbroken at the end of Once when Caleb died, and didn't have much faith that the author could bring me out of the depressed hole she dug. 

I don't want to spoil anything but I do have to say that the ending was very unsatisfying. I felt that so much was left unsaid and unanswered, I'm so antsy. I NEED the answers! A certain character gets killed but I knew it was coming. I'm happy hes gone actually. But there was no drama to his death!! I was baffled. After all the struggle, he was gone in a split second.

Eve remained pretty true to herself  throughout the book and pregnancy, which was a relief. Of course, the baby is Caleb's. OF COURSE it is. She decided to lead a group of girls from a mixture of schools to Califia, the women's camp in the Outlands. I have to get her credit as well; there is no way I could have survived pregnant in the wild. She's tough as a rock.

One big positive was how easily I have been able to imagine "The New America" in the past 3 books. I visualize the capital, City of Sand being located along the East Coast of the US, around where Alabama is presently. I see the outlands as everything north, east and west of the capital walls. Directly north of the capital, I picture Califia to be stantioned, with their many houses and rivers and lakes. Due west from there, I see Eve's old School, and nearby there, I see her old house and neighborhood. It's sad, I can only picture what it looked like after the virus..

Overall, Rise didn't do much for me. The epilogue left me only slightly satisfied knowing that Eve is able to have a happy life in the future. Too brief, too short, etc. Not my cup of tea as the 3rd and final book of this series.

Review of/Blog Tour: How I Fall by Anne Eliot

How I Fall by Anne Eliot

Page Count(e-book Edition): 379 pgs
Publisher: Butterfly Books, LLC
Released: June 15th, 2015
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
My Rating: 5/5 stars
Read: from 7/1/14-7/15/14
Source: An e-book copy was sent in exchange for an honest review. Thank you bunches Anne!
Synopsis: 

ELLEN LIKES CAM * CAM LIKES ELLEN *
What if the one person you can't stop thinking about...
...can't stop thinking about you?

*CAM LIKES ELLEN *
What if during one long day you failed at everything because you met this glitter-crazed new girl who practically ruins your life? Worse, she insists you and your secret crush become best friends—with her?!! Only you don’t have time to be friends with insane people, and you think your crush might need to stay the way it’s always been: Distant. Impossible. In your head. This is because you have problems and secrets a crush would never understand.

*ELLEN LIKES CAM *
But what if the three of you wind up assigned to a group photography project, and rumors are already circling about the new girl being ridiculous? You know she’s nice but alone, so you convince your crush to help protect the new girl. Working on the project suddenly makes hanging out, texting, talking—and even high school—seem completely normal when it’s anything but.

ELLEN LIKES CAM * CAM LIKES ELLEN *
What if you fall for each other just enough to kiss…and it’s perfect? You tell secrets and make the kind of promises that might be impossible to keep when you’re only sixteen. Which is why, long before it all falls apart, you already knew nothing this beautiful could have been meant to be yours for long.

But what if… 

(from Goodreads)

This book wasn't just your traditional high school love, it was so much more than that. It was the scary truth of falling in love with someone who is so different than you imagine, but somehow, it makes perfect sense. How I Fall was able to shed light on the easy and hard parts of falling in love, all while keeping it upbeat and heartwarming.

I so wanted to scream at Cam in the beginning when I learned that he has had a crush on Ellen for all these years. I know its hard to talk to your crush and all, but starting a conversation can get you places! So I was very happy with how they came about being able to talk! I found it so adorable how Cam, the jock and high school quarterback, was so down to earth and didn't fall for any of the queen bee admirer's. He had seen Ellen's beauty in her strength, from living with CP for all her life. Despite Ellen's Cerebal Palsy, she really seemed to be a normal teenage girl to me!! I loved how she never let her condition stop her from pursuing her dreams and living her life as much as she could. I admire her!

I'm sorry that this is a spoiler but I WANTED TO SCREAM WITH PURE JOY EXCITEMENT HAPPINESS ELATION ETC when they kissed!!!!!!! It was the most perfect surreal moment. I even made them a hashtag : #camllen

Although their relationship was not picture perfect, Anne made it work so, so well. Their love for one another is true and real and I was gripping my kindle for dear life while reading. Their twisted lives made the plot so very action packed. The plot twist in the end almost killed me.  You'll know what I mean when you read this book, as I suggest you to go do NOW! 

So I really need the 2nd book right now, as in this second right now. Waiting for it to magically appear in my hands. *prays to the book gods for it*

Author Interview:

Me : When did you first really begin to love writing?

Anne: I loved writing for the first time when I joined Romance Writer’s of America and met the first of my ‘future best friends’! Writing, for the most part fills me with doubt and I never quite think it’s good enough. But going to writing classes, and meeting other writers? Now that is love.

Me: Out of all of your books so far, favorite character and why?

 Anne: Oh Haley, that’s a really tough question. I love them all because I spend so much time with them, but the names that jumped into my head was ‘best friend, Jenna’ because she did crack me up a lot. But…oh, then there’s Hunter and Vere and Jess and Gray, and Cam and Ellen, and…of course I have a crush on Patrick.

Me: How do you come up with the topics you write about?

Anne: The topics usually come up from my own life. Almost was about rape-related PTSD. That topic came about because when I was in high school a dear friend was raped at a party by an acquaintance of ours. Hunter Kennedy’s depression came about because I have 2 dear friends who were depressed as teens, and who both got better. One on her own, the other still needs medication to stay stabilized, and they are both such amazing moms and women now, I wanted to explore that time in life when you learn to love yourself and move on, despite what weighs you down. The topic of How I Fall, came about by an inspiring girl named Allison Winn who actually doesn’t have CP, but who has symptoms very similar to left sided CP. I wanted this girl to have a book about a girl who falls down some and who is tippy on one side of her body, but who still gets to have a normal love story. I settled on CP when looking for something to match her symptoms. The second book in this series, How I Fly, is about the same characters and we just switched the cover to green to salute CP Awareness because I’ve met such amazing teens like a girl called Chloe and and a young woman called Charisse who've really inspired me to work on spreading information about Cerebral Palsy awareness. 

Me: Favorite part about writing and least favorite part?

Anne: My favorite part about writing is when fans tell me they liked the story, and the least favorite part is when I can’t quiet the voices in my head that make me doubt myself as I write.

About the Author:

Anne Eliot writes sweet, first-love stories. She was raised in the mountains of Colorado, but says she really learned about life, love and friendships from summers spent with her large, Italian immigrant family in Ontario, Canada.

Anne is grateful to have had schools with inspiring teachers and librarians who directed her to worlds she would not have found on her own. To this day, she adores school visits, teaching writing to teens, and is dedicated to making sure kids in need have access to books that will fuel their hopes and dreams.

While growing up, Anne hid her own anxieties by hiding and reading book after book. She developed an addiction to first love, first kisses and her favorite: the happy-ever-after story. This is what she writes today. Now she's a mom of two and happily married to her own first love. Anne works hard to juggle being a wife and parent while writing, but fails at cooking because she is still trying to read book, after book of love stories on the side.

Anne Eliot’s first book, Almost, became a top 100 best selling Kindle book, and was a Readers Choice, Top 12 of 2012 book for Amazon.com at #11, and will be translated and released in Germany and Turkey fall 2013. Her second book, Unmaking Hunter Kennedy, is a also a Kindle, top 100 best selling book in Teen Romance for 2013. She's hard at work on her third novel, another sweet teen romance releasing fall/winter, 2013. She loves to hear from readers. Please look for her on Facebook or tweet her @yaromance.

Author Links: 

Goodreads: http://bit.ly/1r6nTF4

Website: http://www.anneeliot.com/

Facebook Fanpage: http://on.fb.me/1r6nItz

Twitter: @yaromance

Tumblr: http://anneeliot.tumblr.com/

Inspiration for the story:

The character of Ellen Foster is fictional, but her Cerebral Palsy symptoms and hemiparesis/balance issues loosely match what an amazing teen (and I girl I’m proud to call my friend) named Allison Winn, faces every single day. Her condition was not brought on by CP, but was brought about due to complications Allison suffered after the removal of a childhood brain tumor which resulted in side effects that will be with her for the rest of her life.

Despite all that sadness, with the help of her mom, Dianna, dad Brian, the patience of her sister, Emily, and the inspiration from

a tiny rescued dog named Coco, Allison was inspired to help other kids by baking dog biscuits (thousands of them) so she could raise money to help other kids like her. These biscuits were hand sold by Allison for months (and now years) so other sick kids and sad families could afford to adopt a fully trained dog from a very special program into their lives.

At age nine, Allison’s goal was to raise enough money so one special trained dog could be placed with a kid who had life threatening issues. She met that goal, and that same year adopted out 10 dogs with the sales of her dog treats! Now she’s fourteen and her project has a name: The Stinkbug Project. Stinkbug has now adopted out 40+ dogs to kids who live around the Rocky Mountain Region all because Allison never gives up baking. Now so many people help to raise awareness while others donate baking and packaging supplies and volunteer to help Allison bake and sell the treats.

This girl, who soon will be an amazing woman, is now cancer free but she still works tirelessly at baking and selling biscuits for what has become a thriving community charity effort. The trained dogs are all rescued dogs who come from the very special, Colorado based, K-9 correctional dog training program. Adoptions and applications for a dog are now handled via the Rocky Mountain Children’s Health Foundation. More information about The Stinkbug Project, Allison, and RMHF can be found at:

http://www.rmchildren.org/programs/stink-bug-project/

Every year, a donation will be sent by me to support this amazing project, and at all book signings I will be accepting donations on behalf of this wonderful project and donating them to Allison’s efforts as well.

So I think that's a wrap! If you made it this far in this super long post, then major kudos for you!! Thank you to Anne Eliot and Mandy over at I Read Indie for letting me participate in this awesome blog tour!

♦Haley♦

Review of: The Beginning of After by Jennifer Castle

The Beginning of After by Jennifer Castle

Page Count(Hardcover Edition): 425 pgs
Publisher: HarperTeen
Released: September 6th, 2011
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary
My Rating: 3/5 stars
Read: from 5/13/13 to 6/26/13
Source: Books-A-Million
Synopsis: 

Anyone who’s had something truly crappy happen to them will tell you: It’s all about Before and After. What I’m talking about here is the ka-pow, shake-you-to-your-core-and-turn-your-bones-to-plastic kind of crappy.

Sixteen-year-old Laurel’s world changes instantly when her parents and brother are killed in a terrible car accident. Behind the wheel is the father of her bad-boy neighbor, David Kaufman, whose mother is also killed. In the aftermath of the tragedy, Laurel navigates a new reality in which she and her best friend grow apart, boys may or may not be approaching her out of pity, overpowering memories lurk everywhere, and Mr. Kaufman is comatose but still very much alive. Through it all there is David, who swoops in and out of Laurel’s life and to whom she finds herself attracted against her better judgment. She will forever be connected to him by their mutual loss—a connection that will change them both in unexpected ways.

Jennifer Castle’s debut novel is a heart-wrenching, surprisingly witty testament to how drastically life can change in the span of a single moment.

(from Goodreads)

The Beginning of After was truly it's title. After a horrible thing happens and it affects your family or friends, you have to start over again. I know, I've been there my share of times. This book perfectly navigated one girls' journey after her mother, father and brother were killed in a car accident.

One of the most important things this book taught me was how to be sad, how to grieve, which I think everyone needs to know how to do. If you don't grieve, you will never be able to get past something that has happened. But also, after grieving, you have to begin to grow from it. Laurel taught me that it is perfectly okay to feel bad for yourself when something awful happens. But she also taught me the importance of getting back up on your feet and persevering through life once again. Life is full of ups and downs, no matter how much we wish the downside's of life ceased to exist

I think the story line was brilliant. Bad boy neighbors-dad, Mr. Kaufman,  is responsible for the deaths of her family. He is comatose, but the only survivor of that night. I sympathized with Laurel as she began to come to terms with what has happened. She didn't know who to blame, herself for not saving the day, or Mr. Kaufman. David, his son, is also dealing with this car accident as his father is in critical condition. It was nice to see that Laurel didn't automatically shun him, whilst she didn't exactly invite him over for dinner as well. It took time for their relationship to grow, and I appreciated that! Not very fond of insta-loves!

On a happier note, I adore this cover! The actor perfectly resembles what I would have thought Laurel would have looked like. Plus, just the colors and design are gorgeous!

If you're looking for a deeper, emotional contemporary read focused on moving forward in life, this book is for you!

♦Haley♦

Review of: The Elite(The Selection, #2) by Kiera Cass

The Elite(The Selection, #2) by Kiera Cass

Page Count(Hardcover Edition): 323 pgs
Publisher: HarperTeen 
Released: April 23rd, 2013
Genre: Young Adult Dystopia
My Rating: 5 stars
Read: from  April 25 to May 02, 2013
Source: Amazon
Synopsis: 

The hotly-anticipated sequel to the New York Times bestseller, The Selection.

Thirty-five girls came to the palace to compete in the Selection. All but six have been sent home. And only one will get to marry Prince Maxon and be crowned princess of Illea.

America still isn’t sure where her heart lies. When she’s with Maxon, she’s swept up in their new and breathless romance, and can’t dream of being with anyone else. But whenever she sees Aspen standing guard around the palace, and is overcome with memories of the life they planned to share. With the group narrowed down to the Elite, the other girls are even more determined to win Maxon over—and time is running out for America to decide.

Just when America is sure she’s made her choice, a devastating loss makes her question everything again. And while she’s struggling to imagine her future, the violent rebels that are determined to overthrow the monarchy are growing stronger and their plans could destroy her chance at any kind of happy ending.

(from Goodreads)

The Elite is the 2nd out of three books in Kiera Cass's trilogy, The Selection, of which I am wholeheartedly OBSESSED with! I had high expectations for this book because of The Selection, and let me tell you, I wasn't the slightest disappointed!

Since this is the 2nd book in the series and the competition between girls is narrowing down, it was definitely faster paced than with the first. I loved that, I kept right up with it as I finished it in a mere few days. I couldn't get enough of it. I was turning pages left and right.

One thing that made this book so exciting was the amount of action! The attacks on the castle became more frequent and had higher stakes, so naturally my heart was beating out of my chest. I also adored the development of Maxon and America's relationship. Though Maxon has other girls as well at the castle, it wasn't hard for me to see how much he truly cares for America and all that she stands for! I will support them till the end. (TEAM MAXON ALL THE WAY). 

I won't say it, but something happens to a pivotal character in the story that truly ripped my heart out! I was so shocked when I read the words along the lines of "She is being caned" I love this particular character so much and almost cried when this happened. Props to Kiera for making me so emotional!

As you already know, I like Maxon over Aspen. I believe that Aspen had his chance with America in the beginning, and since that didn't work out, it's Maxon's turn now! I know that America loves them both blah blah, blah, but STILL. I like Maxon better plain and simple. I just wish Maxon would man up and America would quit being so indecisive over the two of them! Ugh just pick one!(Preferably Maxon please and thank you (: )

Yes, yes yes yes yes I totally absolutely recommend this book to everyone and anyone out there because I love this series just as much as the next person and I want you to share these feelings as well with me! But please read The Selection first because reading them out of order would kinda ruin it!

♦Haley♦

Blog Tour: Hedge Witch(The Coven Land Trilogy, #1) by Simon Kewin

Hedge Witch(The Coven Land Trilogy, #1) by Simon Kewin

Publisher: Stormcrow Books
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
My Rating: 4/5 stars
Read: April 27th - March 10th
Source: Big thank you to Xpresso Book Tours and Simon Kewin for a review copy!
Synopsis:

Fifteen year-old Cait Weerd has no idea she’s being sought by the undain: sorcerous creatures of necromancy that feed off the spirit of the living. She doesn’t know the undain need her blood to survive. She doesn’t even know, descended from a long line of witches. Cait Weerd doesn’t know a lot, really, but all that’s about to change.

At Manchester Central Library she’s caught up in sudden, horrific violence. In the chaos she’s handed an old book that’s been hidden there and told to run, hide the book or destroy it. It contains all the secrets of the undains’ existence. They and their human servants want to find that as much as they want Cait.

Cait learns the fates of two worlds are at stake. Just what she needs. Along with definitely-not-a-boyfriend Danny, she has to decide what the hell to do. Run, fight or hope it all goes away.

It's only then she learns who she really is, along with the terrible truth of what the undain have been doing in our world all this time...

Wow this book really got my mind spinning! I couldn't believe how many things happened at once, I was turning pages like a mad man!

One of my favorite things about this book what the development of each character. You get to learn about Cait, Fer, Ran, Johnny, Cait's mother and grandma, and even Hellen and Ariane. Some of this characters had a point of view to read it from, which was really interesting. I had a few laughs when Fer was talking, she has a fire in her!

Usually, fantasy books that involve witches and the supernatural get me lost the moment  I begin reading. This is one of the rare few that didn't. The names and spells of things were actually really interesting, and made sense! Props to Simon for pulling that off.

I loved the fact how, though this book seemed long, the time span was really only a few days. The big groups' adventure got me thinking about what was going to happen next and if the "police" were going to catch them.

All in all, Hedge Witch was a really great read. I enjoyed picking it up everyday and learning something new about their world. Everyone should definitely check this out!

Purchase:
-Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JKIE5KY

AUTHOR BIO:

Simon was born on the misty Isle of Man but now lives deep in the English countryside with his wife and two daughters.

He writes science fiction and fantasy as well as some stories that can’t make their minds up.Find out more on his website at simonkewin.co.uk.

Author Links:
http://www.simonkewin.co.uk/
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4013862.Simon_Kewin
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Simon-Kewin-Author/139665209438997
https://twitter.com/SimonKewin

I hope you all enjoyed! Again, a HUGE thank you to Xpresso Book Tours and Simon Kewin for letting me be a part of this!!

♦Haley♦

Review of: North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley

North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley

Page Count(Paperback Edition):  373 pgs
Publisher: Little, Brown Books
Released: February 17th, 2009
Genre: Young Adult Romance
My Rating: 3/5 stars
Read: April 4th-17th, 2013
Source: Books-A-Million

Synopsis:

I repeat-Why not fix your face?

It's hard not to notice Terra Cooper.

She's tall, blond, and has an enviable body. But with one turn of her cheek, all people notice is her unmistakably "flawed" face. Terra secretly plans to leave her stifling small town in the Northwest and escape to an East Coast college, but gets pushed off-course by her controlling father. When an unexpected collision puts Terra directly in Jacob's path, the handsome but quirky Goth boy immediately challenges her assumptions about herself and her life, and she is forced in yet another direction. With her carefully laid plans disrupted, will Terra be able to find her true path?

Written in lively, artful prose, award-winning author Justina Chen Headley has woven together a powerful novel about a fractured family, falling in love, travel, and the meaning of true beauty.

"The meaning of true beauty". That really does say it all. True beauty comes from within oneself, outer beauty has almost nothing to do with it. Beauty is how cordial you are with people. Beauty is being yourself, and most important of all, beauty is you and me.

I think the way Headley captured this subject was brilliant. Terra is obviously flawless, besides the port wine stain on her face that she has had since she was a child. Some may even say it marr's her face, or it is a "pity" that she has this awful stain on her cheek. When the author created Terra as a character, she knew what she was getting into with the subject of self love and self acceptance. 

Through ought the story, we travel with Terra on her day to day life,boyfriend, friends and family.  What struck me the most was her family life, and the father she has to live with. I don't want to give too much away, but he is a insulting pig to Terra and her mother. Just plain awful.

I loved the incorporation of maps and facts about maps into the story. I never realized how interesting cartography could be. Headley was able to perfectly intertwine facts about geography right into Terra's life. You could easily make the correlation between the two.

At the beginning of the story, Terra did not have a great self esteem. She covered up her stain with pounds of makeup and powder to just try to convince herself she was normal. Terra has gotten so many stares over the years that she just decided to cover up her beautiful natural self. Towards the end though, she changes her view on that and I basically jumped with glee! She finally realized how perfect she was, inside and out. Makeup covering up who she was on the outside was only keeping her from her full potential. 

The trip to China really pulled the whole story together. Terra and her mother Lois learn so much about themselves, while becoming closer and closer to the family they traveled with, Jacob and his mother.

Overall, this book made me extremely happy! I think this is something all girls need to read to realize their full potential and extraordinary beauty. Too many teens these days struggle with their self image as they have society pressing on them with what they need to look like and act like to be perfect. I admit to being one of those teens to struggle with who I am, but with help of a very close friend, I am now happier with myself and my body than I have in a while. North of Beautiful really opened up my eyes.

♦Haley♦

Cover Reveal: Reap by Christina Channelle

Hi everyone! I hope you are having a great 4th of July so far if you live in the States. Today I have an awesome cover reveal and a giveaway of a book coming out soon. Enjoy!

Reap by Christina Channelle

Publication Date: October 11th, 2013

Genre: YA Paranormal Romance 

Synopsis:

Foreign, or rather unfamiliar, would be the word I would use to describe how I felt.

Faintly, I could hear the glimmer of voices surrounding me in this dark haze, caressing my ears like skin against silk. I felt like I was in a cocoon of sorts, protectively enveloped, quietly drifting in some far-off place. I wanted to stay that way forever.

But we all know that what you want never really seems to happen in the real world.

Something’s not right in Mia’s head.

The first thing is that her name isn’t Mia. In fact, she has no clue what her name is—who she is. All that she knows is that she’s not like the ones who found her: Dante with his kind blue eyes, Amy with her child-like demeanor, James with his questioning gaze.

And Briggs.

The one she cannot decipher no matter how hard she tries.

As Mia tries to fit in with these people, a strange occurrence is amidst outside. And as she finally remembers who she is …

Well, let’s just say that things get a little more complicated.

Author Bio:

A dreamer, Christina Channelle holds two degrees in health sciences but has always had a passion for writing. You will find her reading other young adult novels, or typing up a new story on her computer. When not writing, Christina spends her free time at the movies, listening to music, or eating sushi. She’s a reality TV junkie and has a close relationship to many characters on TV that have been a topic of many heated discussions among friends. She resides in Ontario, Canada.

Author Links:

Website

Goodreads

Facebook

Twitter

Giveaway:

I am not the one handling the giveaway, it is the author of this book who is doing so. I am simply sharing it.

Rules:

• To enter,simply fill out the Rafflecopter form below.
• I ask that all entrants be 13 years or older.
• This giveaway is open to US and Canada only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

** Thank you to Giselle@Xpresso Book Tours and and Christina Channelle for letting me be a part of this cover reveal!**

♦Haley♦

Waiting on Wednesday #4

Imperfect Spiral by Debbie Levy


Page Count(Hardcover Edition): 352 pgs
Publisher: Walker Childrens
Publication Date: July 16th, 2013
Genre: Young Adult Contemporary

Synopsis: 

Danielle Snyder's summer job as a babysitter takes a tragic turn when Humphrey, the five-year-old boy she's watching, runs in front of oncoming traffic to chase down his football. Immediately Danielle is caught up in the machinery of tragedy: police investigations, neighborhood squabbling, and, when the driver of the car that struck Humphrey turns out to be an undocumented alien, outsiders use the accident to further a politically charged immigration debate. 

Wanting only to mourn Humphrey, the sweet kid she had a surprisingly strong friendship with, Danielle tries to avoid the world around her. Through a new relationship with Justin, a boy she meets at the park, she begins to work through her grief, but as details of the accident emerge, much is not as it seems. It's time for Danielle to face reality, but when the truth brings so much pain, can she find a way to do right by Humphrey's memory and forgive herself for his death?

 Why I want to read this:

• The cover has a dark meaning but is enticing
• The synopsis grabbed me
• The central theme seems to be forgive and forget, which is what I really need to work on.

♦Haley♦

Top Ten Tuesday #5

This week's topic is Top Ten Books I've Read So Far In 2013. I've read 15 books this year so far, and I'm trying to read 75.

Meme by The Broke and Bookish

1. The Silenced by James Devita

I don't recall a book ever making me think this long and hard about the future world and what the probability is of an apocalypse in the future. I honestly haven't been this aghast after reading a book except for The book thief. It's definitely my favorite book of 2013 so far. I will be putting up a review of it soon, so stay tuned!

2. The Elite(The Selection, #2) by Kiera Cass

At the beginning of the year, I read The Selection, the first of this series, and I LOVED IT. I can't believe I'm saying this but, I LOVE THIS ONE EVEN MORE. I don't know how it's possible that this book had even more action and romance and suspense?!?? I became obsessed, and of course being me, I made sure that my copy would be delivered from Amazon the day it came out, and it did!

3. The Selection(The Selection, #1) by Kiera Cass

So when I first got my copy of this book, I really didn't know that there was a lot of hype about it, but after I read it(let me mention, I more like devoured it in one night sitting okay) I could understand totally! The future-ness and competition like themes pulled at my heartstrings, and I just loved it then as I love it now!

4. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

I read this for my English class, and I really did enjoy the story. Since my class all read it together, we basically picked at the tiniest details, so I totally understood the theme and the mood of the story afterwards. We also watched the movie, and I liked it too! Usually, we read really boring Non-Fiction books in English, so this was a good surprising turn.

5. North of Beautiful by Justina Chen

This was a book that I knew I wanted to pick up, but it wasn't a huge need. One day, I just saw it at Books-A-Million and thought, "Yeah, why not?" I really really enjoyed this book! I wasn't expecting much, but I actually learned a lot about myself while reading it. I have yet to write a review, but it's coming soon!

6. Entwined by Heather Dixon

This was kind of a new topic for me, as dancing and olden times are a focal point in the story. I thought the pace could've gone a bit faster, but it was a really great book!

7. Burn for Burn by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

One thing I really thought was intersting about this book was that is was all centered on revenge. I know people say revenge is bad, two wrongs don't make a right, so on and so forth. But somewhere along the line, a girl has to have a guilty pleasure!Also, the fact that this book was co-written by two different authors, while their work fits in seamlessly together, makes it all the more cooler!

8. Ever(Ever, #1) by Jessa Russo

I actually already was included in a  book tour for this, and enjoyed the book. It was fast paced with lots of drama, romance and action just like I like it. Ever definitely kept me entertained!

9. Transfusion(Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, #1) by Nikki Jefford

This was also another book I was included in for a book tour, and this was enjoyable too! I needed vampires back in my life again, because the last 2 major series I read about them were The Twilight Saga and Vampire Academy. Definitely loved this one, hoping for the next soon!

10. Glimmerglass(Glimmerglass, #1) by Jenna Black

Lets start out with this: I don't do Faerie books. They just aren't my thing, my genre, whatever. I've had bad past experiences with them that make me wanna just throw the book away. With Glimmerglass however, this was the first Faerie book I really got into. The story made sense, with good romance and rising plot actions. I would definitely like to read the 2nd book sometime soon, whenever I go back to the library again.

So there we have it! Guys! This is my second post since I've been back!*Gasps audibly* I just hope I keep on this track.

♦Haley♦

Blog Tour: Transfusion(Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, #1) by Nikki Jefford

Hi everyone. So today I have a book tour to share with you all. I am including my review, giveaways, and other tour stops along the way. I hope you enjoy!

Transfusion(Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter, #1) by Nikki Jefford

Page Count(E-book Edition): 231 pgs
Publisher: Nikki Jefford
Released: December 9th, 2012
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
My Rating: 4/5 stars
Read: March 18th-26th, 2013
Source: Xpresso Book Tours

Synopsis: 

If there is one thing eighteen-year-old Aurora Sky wants, it's to get off the iceburg she calls home. Being kissed before she graduates wouldn't hurt either.

Then a near-fatal car wreck changes everything. Government agents step in and save Aurora's life in exchange for her services as a vampire hunter. In Alaska. Basically, she's a glorified chew toy. All thanks to her rare blood type, which sends a vampire into temporary paralysis right before she has to finish the job.. by hand.

Now, Aurora's only friends are groupies of the undead and the only boy she can think about may very well be a vampire. And if she's a vampire, will she be forced to kill him?

Transfusion was a very enjoyable read. Nikki Jefford was able to break all the vampire stereotypes, and make her own new vampire species. She was able to piece together Aurora and Fane's love, while adding in the vampire hunting with danger.

Obviously, Aurora and Fane were my 2 favorite characters, while Noel came in close 3rd. Aurora is this witty, comical, sarcastic senior in high-school that made me chuckle and smile while I turned the pages. Even though she has been through quite a lot, she made the best of every situation with her side comments. Fane is this mysterious,(SPOILER ALERT!) charming vampire that I came to love as he interacted with Aurora. He stole my heart from the beginning, and  had me swooning every time he is mentioned. Noel is a character I adored. She is part of this "groupie" at their high-school and has just become friends with Aurora. Not only did she really care for Aurora like a sister, she really helped her out in the end like any close friend would have done. Noel was like a little kitten; I just wanted to hold her and hug her tight! Oh, and yes, Dante. Boy, he was scrumptious! I actually imagined him looking like Emmett Cullen(Kellan Lutz) in The Twilight Saga. For all you twilight lovers like me, you may get the comparison I'm trying to make: Dark hair, skin, big and muscly ;) I could have cried with happiness when Jefford added this little part in the book when Dante was interested in Aurora. You could probably hear me chanting TEAM DURORA! TEAM DURORA! Sadly, Nikki chose not to commit to their possible love :(

When Aurora became a Vampire Hunter, her whole demeanor changed, in a good way. She became tougher and a better fighter than before. Aurora was very calm in most of the vampire killings throughout the book, which is a trait that I admire. I know that if that was me, I'd probably either go crazy or break down and cry.

All in all, Transfusion was a great jump start to Nikki Jefford's new series, and I can't wait to read the next book in the series, Northern Bites.

Tour Stops:

If you are interested, I am linking the tour schedule here for you to check out as well. Have fun!

Where to Purchase:

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

About The Author:

Nikki Jefford is a third generation Alaskan who loves fictional bad boys and heroines who kick butt. She is the author of the Spellbound Trilogy and upcoming Aurora Sky: Vampire Hunter series. Nikki married Sebastien, the love of her life, while working as a teaching assistant in France. They now reside in the not-so-tropical San Juan Islands, 70 miles northeast of Forks, Washington.

Author Links:

Website

Goodreads

Facebook

Twitter

Book Trailer:

Giveaway Time!:

Rules:

• To enter, simply fill out the Rafflecopter forms below
• When the top giveaway's winner is chosen, it will be announced here and the winner will be emailed by me. Please check your email, because I am only giving the winner 48 hours to respond. Another winner will be selected if this occur's.
• Please enter your email address in the form below, and not in the comments please!(:
• I ask that all entrants be 13 years or older.
• The first giveaway is INT(international)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This Tour Grand Prize includes everyone that has entered throughout the tour. Feel free to enter!
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hope you enjoyed! See you soon!

♦Haley♦

Blog Tour: Ever(Ever, #1) by Jessa Russo

Hi guys! So today I have my first blog tour of Ever by Jessa Russo. I will inlcude my review with all of the information you will want/need on Jessa. Enjoy!

Ever(Ever, #1) by Jessa Russo

Page Count(E-book Edition): 295 pgs
Publisher: Curiosity Quills Press
Released: October 1st, 2012
Genre: Young Adult Paranormal
My Rating: 4/5 stars
Read: March 18th-25th, 2013
Source: Review copy provided by Jessa/Curiosity Quills Press

Synopsis: 

Seventeen-year-old Ever’s love life has been on hold for the past two years. She’s secretly in love with her best friend Frankie, and he’s completely oblivious.

Of course, it doesn't help that he’s dead, and waking up to his ghost every day has made moving on nearly impossible.

Frustrated and desperate for something real, Ever finds herself falling for her hot new neighbor Toby. His relaxed confidence is irresistible, and not just Ever knows it. But falling for Toby comes with a price that throws Ever’s life into a whirlwind of chaos and drama. More than hearts are on the line, and more than Ever will suffer.

Some girls lose their hearts to love.

Some girls lose their minds.

Ever Van Ruysdael could lose her soul.

(from Goodreads)

Ever, for me, was a semi-hard book to get into. It was almost as if something was holding me back, and I think that the lack of plot movement until about halfway through was it. In the beginning, I was waiting for something to happen, something to unfold. I was happy with Toby and Ever canoodling and such, but I wanted action, cliffhangers and all the good stuff if you get my drift. Boy, was I in store for all of that plus more..

Ever, Toby and Frankie. The perfect stereotypical love triangle. Actually, I wouldn't really consider it a love triangle until the last 10-15 chapters or so. It was really Ever and Toby, with Frankie as a ghost, and then something happens to Frankie that I shall not mention for the sake of those who want to read this book. I actually didn't mind their love triangle, because it wasn't forced, but I did have one problem with it because Ever kept mentioning it. She kept fluctuating between Toby and Frankie, and kept going over the same exact points every time. For Frankie, she knew he was a ghost, and there would be no way to act on her feelings for him and vice versa. For Toby, she felt guilty for dating him, because she felt like she was betraying Frankie by being happy with Toby. It's all confusing, I know. It got quite irritating after a while, but it soon dwindled down into nothing.

I absolutely loved Jessie! She is the perfect best friend for Ever, and a sister that I would love to have. She protected, defended and stood up for not only Ever, but occasionally Frankie and Toby, and Ever's mom. With her, I adored Greg. He seemed super cute and friendly with Ever and Jessie. In Ever's time of needs, he was there for her, by either having a hand on her shoulder, or on the small of her back, guiding her in moments of need. He seemed like the perfect guy best friend or big brother for Ever.

Man oh man, can Jessa Russo write some steamy makeout sessions! My eyes were glued to the page, oh my. She made it seem as though you were in the room as it was happening, no matter how weird and awkward that sounds, haha(:

My heart started beating so fast when every. single. part/secret to the story unfolded in Ever's kitchen. In the span of about 2 minutes, plot twist after plot twist after plot twist unveiled itself on the story, and left my mind going WHAT JUST HAPPENED :OOO. I'm pretty sure my mouth gaped open, due to the amount of information that was let out. Then, it got even better near the end when even more plot twists and secrets were revealed. I can honestly say I was super surprised at the end. I was left with a huge cliffhanger!

Ever was a hard book to get settled into, but once I was totally indulged, I was thrown around on a major roller coaster of events. I was honestly shocked near the end, but I'm excited to read the next in the series, Evade.

*A big Thank You to Jessa Russo and Curiosity Quills Press for providing me a review copy. Thanks for letting me participate in this book tour!*

About the Author:

I'm an unashamed super fan of all things paranormal romance. I read, write and breathe paranormal YA, rarely straying from my comfort zone. Seriously. I love the stuff.

When not writing or reading, I'm out and about making memories with some seriously awesome people - for an introvert, I'm pretty extroverted. ;-) You can bet that I'm also ALWAYS secretly planning my next trip to New Orleans. (If my eyes glaze over, I'm in one of my stories, or NOLA.)

I have a husband I love as much now as I did when we first fell in love over ten years ago, and a daughter we're doing our best to raise with manners, values, and spunk.

Southern California will always be home, but I'm open to suggestions.

Links:

Jessa's Website

Jessa on Twitter

EVER on Amazon

On Barnes & Noble

Goodreads/EVER

Goodreads/EVADE

On Jessa's Website, she is hosting a giveaway of one signed paperback copy of EVER, and one signed paperback copy of EVADE(coming soon). Please click the link and enter if you are interested! I know I am! ;)

Well, that wraps up today's post! I hope you enjoyed it, and I thank Jessa Russo and Curiosity Quills Press for giving me this chance to participate! I had fun(:

♦Haley♦

Showcase Sunday, #3: The Anne Eliot Edition!

Showcase Sunday is a wonderful meme hosted by the lovely Vicki @ Books, Biscuits and Tea. If you would like to join, please click HERE.

So, last weekend or so, I received a ginormous package full of goodies from one of my best-author friends, Anne Eliot, author of Unmaking Hunter Kennedy and Almost. Over the past couple months, we have become really close after I reviewed Unmaking Hunter Kennedy. Click the name to see the review,if you wish(: She was so generous and kind enough to send me her two books, a coffee mug, and plenty of other book-related swag + Rio 2016 Olympics swag! 

○○○○○

~Unmaking Hunter Kennedy~

Paperback

Unmaking Hunter Kennedy was the first book I have read and reviewed of Anne Eliot's. I was super excited when she asked me, and I was not disappointed! So happy to have this baby with me now(:

~Almost~

Getting Almost in the mail was suprising. I mean, I knew I was getting it, but it was sort of a freebie when Anne offered it! I'm super stoked to read this book, it sounds so interesting! Plus, both of these books are heavy, which is a good thing! I really like it that way(:

This was such a cool post card! As to her writing, these are ancient sand dunes turned on their side. This is all in her backyard in Colorado! Neat!

This is too cute! I mean, it sums up my life in one sentence. This may end up as my bumper sticker one day, you never know! ;)

Agh! A coffee mug! YAY! :D Even though I don't drink coffee, I can use this for lots of drinks! Plus, this is the first of it's kind, so it's awesome-er(is that even a word? lol)

I know this is hard to see, but it says Rio 2016. And some stuff on the front I don't understand, but anywhoo, this is cooool! I mean, who else has Olympics just released swag besides me and Anne?? It's pretty spanking awesome.

So that was a long a drawn out Showcase Sunday! But, I really wanted to get it out there for all you guys, and wanted to appreciate Anne for all she sent me! Thanks bunches Anne! Yes, I know this is a day late.. yada yada.. I'm busy, people! Haha just kidding(: What did you get for your Showcase Sunday? Feel free to elaborate in the comments.

♦Haley♦